The End is Near (and we deserve it) . . . Cocaine for Votes

No, this isn’t in Chicago or even Marion Berry’s D.C., but those are good guesses.

Upon reflection, I think there’s a certain honesty in this. It’s a straight out bribe. It isn’t veiled with names like “middle class tax cuts” or “economic stimulus” or “White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans.” I don’t like politicians bribing the people with their own money. It’s much cleaner to bribe them with drugs that can be sold and the money used to replace the expired unemployment benefits.

image of cocaine from National Archives, public domain

Blogs and Articles in No Particular Order

I love seeing people using their talents to help others. Karen DeLabar was stricken with Toxic Shock Syndrome. To assist with her medical bills, authors are contributing stories for an anthology to sell on her behalf. Please consider contributing to the Orange Karen Tribute Anthology.

Have you ever done something stunningly stupid? Heather Konik confesses. A Tale Told By an Idiot (Me) My thanks to Heather for having the Superhero Hunger Games. My nominee, River from Firefly, took the prize. No power in the Verse can stop her. 🙂

Celestial Seasonings is celebrating 40 years of Sleepytime Tea with a contest. Sing Your Way to Sleepytime. I’m possibly the only writer on the planet who drinks Sleepytime instead of coffee.

image from Celestial Seasonings

In case you missed it, yesterday was International Day of the Girl. Tameri Etherton wishes us a Happy International Day of the Girl and gives us some terrific links to resources.

Catie Rhodes, author of all things serial killer, paranormal and just plain creepy, welcomes Kimberlee Edgar to her blog today to tell about her experience with a type of Appalachian folk magic called The Blood Verse.

Juliette Terzieff and Walking Dead star IronESingleton send out an urgent alert. The chapel from Night of the Living Dead is going to be demolished without our help. ZSC Special Alert: Fix the Chapel

My thanks to Awesome Dipped in Glitter Best Selling Author and founder of WANA International Kristen Lamb for the following video. I’m guessing we all know these people.

The funny thing about that video is that it reminds me of a very well known author (has a extremely devoted blog following) who’s book I looked at the other day on amazon. He sells well and has mostly 5 star reviews, with only a few 1 star ones. Of these, each snarky one he responded to, matching sarcasm for sarcasm of the reviewer. I was in shock. Not only is this bad form, but where is the win in doing that?

Ugh! It’s not even so much the debates as the nastiness that seems to come before and after from the supporters on both sides of this whole election. Save me from them! I think I’m gonna need something stronger than tea. I have personal political opinions, but right now, with the hurtful things I see flying from friends and family on both sides…I’m biting my tongue (so hard sometimes that I can taste copper). An election is not worth losing friends and family over…and unfortunately it doesn’t appear that many people are considering that once those words are out, there’s no taking them back just because the election is over.

You are so right, Kitt. I, too, am biting my tongue, and sometimes not with total success. You make a great point that an election is not worth losing friends and family over. I miss the days of landslides when the country was not so deeply polarized. But the fact is that politicians come and go. They have an 8 year shelf life max. Friends and family should be there before and after those politicians expire.

I could probably be bribed with tacos and brownies. Anyone want to bribe me? 😀

Congrats to your daughter, Piper. They grow up so fast. Sigh. My eldest is 10. I refuse to let her get any older. LOL I told her “That’s it. You’re 10 forever now.” And she said, “Mama, you can’t stop time or nature, you know.”

Tacos and brownies sound delicious! I would much prefer them to cocaine, myself.

My daughter and I have exactly the opposite conversation. She says, “I wish I could be 10 forever. Old enough to be a bit independent but still young enough to live in your basement.” To which I reply, “You can grow old, or you can grow up, but you’ll have to find you own basement to live in eventually.”

Loved that little girl! Genuinely after my own heart. What the picture doesn’t show is that ten minutes later she got in a loud fight with her sibling and had to be carried kicking and screaming out of the museum.

Good laugh, Piper, but Sleepytime tea? Blimey, if you wrote the stuff I write you’d fall asleep quick enough anyway. I’m currently experimenting with different types of Oolong and Earl Grey (which hopefully aren’t street-talk references to some drug).

I’m laughing, I’m crying, I’m all verklempt! That video of the author is a scream. Thanks for the linky love to the International Day of the Girl post. I have to give credit to Patricia Sands. I merely reposted what she originally posted. As long as the message gets out there, it’s all good.

Thanks for the laugh. I’ve never had Sleepytime Tea, but Earl Grey and I have a long-standing relationship. And chai, Scottish Breakfast, Moroccan Mint…